Don't Remind Me of Him
by encore-un-fois
Summary: After fleeing from a burning Konoha village, Sakura finds herself with her old lover's elder brother. And every time she looks into his eyes, she sees Sasuke and her haunting past with him. What will it take to make her forget?
1. A New Start

Sakura didn't know what to do, so she ran. Naruto lay dead on the ground behind her, but the others were still fighting valiantly. The whole Konoha village was trying to fend off the attack of Sasuke and his evil comrades. Though she hated herself for it, she was running away, she simply couldn't bear to face Sasuke. God, Sakura, you fool. How can you still love him after what he did to Naruto? To obtain that wretched mangekyou sharingan. Panting as she darted past the burning ruins, Sakura thought she was safe. But something hard appeared right in front of her and she crashed right into it.

Her first reaction was that it was Sasuke, until she got a clearer look. "I… Itachi." Sakura stopped, knowing it was no use to try and get away. If he wanted to kill her, she couldn't stop him. No more of that nonsense, the fight until the bitter end crap. Naruto had tried it, and now he was dead. Gone forever. Sakura felt tears well in her eyes as she tried not to cry. Konoha seemed doomed too, and she hated Itachi for witnessing her as she fled from his brother. Deep down, she understood that it had not been his doing, but she couldn't find anyone else to hate at this point.

"Damn Uchihas, I hate you, I hate you, you're all fucking bastards!" Sakura spat out, not caring that he didn't care. His eyes, void of the sharingan for once, stared at her emptily. Somewhere deep down, Itachi understood what the girl was feeling. Despair, perhaps? Yes, most likely. She raised a tired arm to hit him, but he caught it easily and threw her back. She hit a tree, but Itachi had been softer than usual. She hardly even felt it behind her. Sakura balled up, letting the tears run freely down her face, simply because she had nothing more to do.

"They're all going to die. You made the right choice, running away," Itachi told her coldly as he stepped over her small body, walking away with the Akatsuki cape billowing out behind him. "But it's all the same. You'll die when they're gone." He continued to walk.

Sakura felt so defeated. Sasuke would take her willingly into his arms, and treat her kindly if she joined him. But she couldn't bear it, she couldn't bear to ever look at him again. It hurt her that he was putting her in this position. She loved him, she was smart enough to know that. But God, she didn't want to. She wanted to despise him, give up on him like all the others had done. "He'll never be the same again." She grit her teeth, and pulled out her last kunai. Placing the sharp blade on her battered wrists, she made a slashing motion and watched the blood begin to spill out from her veins. Sakura wanted only death now.

"You're a coward." Itachi's face appeared inches from hers as the sharingan re-entered his eyes. He moved his hands over her wrists, and his glowing chakra easily repaired the damage done.

"You look so much like him, you know." Sakura breathed heavily, her chest rising then falling. "The only thing that set you apart was that Sasuke had not yet obtained the mangekyou sharingan. But now he has it." She hated him for how he reminded her of Sasuke, how she could feel her love and hate for him burn as she stared into Itachi's blood-red eyes.

"If you want him so much, you should have taken him up on his offer. He would have treated you well." Itachi smirked, reading her mind. She glared at him with feistiness, then turned her head to the side sharply.

Itachi glanced at her silently for another moment. What was he doing, speaking to the stupid little Leaf girl? Perhaps it was her connection to Sasuke that drew him to her. Itachi knew Sasuke wanted her so she could heal the damage that had come with the mangekyou sharingan. Itachi remembered the sensation well. His eyes had been searing with pain, feeling like they were bleeding almost. The sharingan, while powerful, could be terrible to use. Everytime it was activated, Itachi felt the pain shooting back. While using it for long periods of time, he often went blind for weeks after. She could take it all away. There would be no consequence to using the sharingan, no disadvantages at all. Without warning, Itachi delivered a quick blow to Sakura's head. The girl fell back, limp. He picked her up and with a swirl of wind, the two disappeared.

* * *

Sakura woke up, sore and tired. But she was alert. The room she was in was warm, a fireplace crackling. There was a bed, an armchair, a table, and a closet. Her bed was so comfortable, she felt she could drift off again. But then, she realized that she had been taken here by Itachi.

"You're up, I see." Itachi said quietly from the corner of the room. Sakura jumped; she hadn't noticed him at all.

"What do you want with me?" Sakura asked warily as she got out of the bed.

In an instant, he was right in front of her again. She tried to pull herself away but felt her back hitting the cold walls. Sakura couldn't help but feel her heart thud in fear. She willed herself to melt away, for her body to pass through the walls, but no such thing would happen. Itachi seemed to enjoy intimidating her. He looked down at her with a cold expression on his face. Sakura closed her eyes, not wanting to look into the mangekyou sharingan. "Open your eyes." Itachi ordered monotonously. Sakura refused to, and he pushed her further back against the wall. She could feel the heat of his surprisingly warm body seeping into hers. His muscles rippled against her with every breath that he took, every moment she did not do as he wished. Finally, Sakura opened her eyes. He drew back. She stared into his dark red eyes, knowing what would happen.

But nothing did. He said, "Make my eyes they way they were before." Sakura stared at him, surprised he hadn't done something more terrible to her by now.

Finally, Inner Sakura made an appearance. "You knocked me out and brought me here! What the hell makes you think I'll help you in any way?" Sakura shouted at him. "Go fuck off and die somewhere! I want to go, I want to leave!" She hated him. Hated him for looking like Sasuke, for reminding her of him.

"You won't have anywhere to go." He said to her, not angered in the least. Itachi's face held still, in that stoic expression of his.

"Let me go!" Sakura unleashed her inner strength, a burst of chakra enflaming her hands as she moved to strike him. Of course he moved, but not before feeling exactly how strong she was. He was almost impressed. But not quite. She obviously did not know how to control all of her strength yet. If she did, she wouldn't even be in the situation. Sakura moved to hit him again. This time, Itachi reappeared behind her back and grabbed her shoulder, twisting her arms back. Tying them together after muttering a seal, he threw her back onto the large bed.

"You'll heal my eyes, whether you want to or not." Itachi stared at her, his sharingan trying to draw her into a dark memory. He searched for it, tried to find a painful one in her mind.

_**flashback**_

_"Sasuke!" Sakura screamed out. She was naked, writhing underneath him. "Oh, God, Sasuke!" Sakura cried out in pleasure, her hands making indents in his muscled back as he fucked her harder and harder. The handsome Uchiha overtop of her grunted as he felt his release, and she moaned along with him._

_"Sasuke, don't ever leave me," Sakura whispered softly. But then, she felt the coldness of the night air wrap around her and didn't even have to open her eyes to know that he was gone._

_**flashback**_

Sakura cried, sobbed quietly and letting the tears flow freely down her face. She hadn't recuperated from the effects of her memory. Itachi had stopped it abruptly, somewhat surprised by what he was seeing her see. The pink-haired girl had slept with his brother. For the first time in a while, he let a bemused expression cross his face. So the girl had a complicated history with his moronic little brother. He really couldn't bring himself to care.

Finally, Sakura stopped the tears from flowing down her face. "Let me move again, I won't try anything, I promise." She hated being restricted, bound the way she was. Invisible ropes kept her hands behind her back. Sakura bit her lip to keep from shouting profanity at her captor. God, she never wanted to relive the memory of Sasuke ever again. Ironic how every time she looked at him, she only saw his younger brother. "Please."

Itachi's eyes flickered, changing back into their deep shade of dark blue. "You'll heal my eyes or find yourself tied up like this every day."

Sakura's temper flared. "How dare you threaten me! I've already lost everything that's important to me, I don't give a fuck if you tie me up or even if you kill me!"

"You should stop talking. You realize you're sitting tied up on my bed." Itachi let a hint of an amused smirk cross his face. Sakura's face twisted in disgust as she found the meaning of his words. "Relax, kunoichi. I have no interest in that. You'll heal my eyes…" this time he decided to make a threat that could make her feel worse. "Or I'll make you relive Sasuke every day." His eyes flickered coldly.

Sakura could feel her hate for him mounting. "Fine. Fine! I'll do what I can for your fucking eyes."

"Language." Itachi warned. He walked toward the wooden doors, deciding he would let her rest and start healing him the day after. "Rest well. You have work tomorrow, kunoichi."

"It's Sakura."

Itachi stopped for a moment, right in front of the doors. Pushing them open and walking out, he said, "Right. Sakura."

* * *

End of Chapter One

lol i was inspired briefly when i waswalking outside and i saw this cute little japanese boy who reminded me of what sasuke might have looked like a long time ago lol anyway, i'll be updating soon i hope... maybe in the next few days?

thanks for reading, comment maybe:)

TheKat


	2. Bizarre

Sakura felt much better today. Her body had regained its strength and she felt healthier than she had felt in a long, long time. Sakura sighed. Still, what would a healthy body do her if she was trapped here in the middle of nowhere? At this point, she didn't have the spirit to escape. Where would she go?

To Sasuke.

A part of her brain had never given up the dream of being with him, but she recognized that he wasn't the same handsome Uchiha she had fallen in love with. He was cold, and evil, and manipulative. And he had killed Naruto. No, Sasuke didn't love her, he only wanted to use her. For his own gain. Sakura felt like beating herself for always putting up with him. She just couldn't say no to him, and Sasuke knew it. Every night he had come searching for her, he had made it clear that she was just to be a quick shag and nothing else. Every night, she had dreams of waking up with him beside her, but he was always gone in an instant. Yet the next time he came, she said nothing to him. I'm so helpless, so weak… Sakura thought to herself, letting tears well up in her eyes.

And she hated being here with Itachi. God, he looked so much like Sasuke, he even smelled like him, had the same stoic expression… how long would she last before she fell in love with him too?

"Sakura." Itachi appeared right behind her. Instinctively, Sakura swung around and tried to deliver a quick blow to his stomach, but she hit nothing.

Itachi sat in the armchair in her room, rolling his eyes in an almost comical fashion. "Why do you keep on trying?"

Sakura fumed. "Shut up, damn Uchiha. I hate being here." She muttered profanity under her breath before walking up to his armchair. She stood over him fiercely while he sat and looked up at her. "What do you want?"

"Start working." He commanded her.

Sakura raised her hands to do some simple healing tricks that sensei had taught her, but then she hesitated. Perhaps… "If I heal your eyes, will you… will you teach me to fight better?" She asked timidly. Sakura watched as Itachi's eyes raised to her own, unblinking and unfeeling.

"That can be arranged." Itachi muttered quietly. So she wanted to improve. Few training sessions with him, she would be much better than she was now. For now, she was nothing. A wisp of grass in the forest, of no significance or power. No wonder his brother had been able to manipulate her so.

Sakura started healing his eyes slowly. It was quite simple really, Kakashi had explained to her that the sharingan had terrible effects on its user's health. He had taught her how he healed his once every few days, and now she'd finally be able to use it. Her hands glowing with warm, green chakra, the energy flowed into Itachi's eyes. It was slow work, with slow progress, but Itachi's eyes would get better and better…eventually.

After about an hour or so, Sakura stopped, wiped the sweat off her brow and turned around.

Itachi opened his eyes, instantly feeling the improvements. He could really see. His vision wasn't as sharp as a hawk's but he could make out small details. He looked at Sakura and she appeared quite different than how he had first seen her. Her hair seemed more lustrous, her eyes brighter, her skin whiter… She looked, just more beautiful than before. Itachi could almost slap himself. Don't be a soft fool. She's just another one of Sasuke's pawns, nothing more.

Itachi opened his mouth to utter small thanks, but a loud banging sound came from outside the door. Itachi was surprised he hadn't sensed Kisame earlier. He usually noticed him from a mile away. "Enter, Kisame."

Sakura, slightly frightened, moved herself behind Itachi. She felt oddly safe around him. Probably because he could blow his enemies to smithereens, she told herself with a shiver. He was intimidatingly tall, powerful, and handsome. The way he held himself, just with an air of knowing something that you didn't, was enough to make her go crazy. Sakura snapped out of her thoughts as Kisame came whirling in a mass of grey.

"Itachi!" Kisame was awfully loud to be Itachi's partner. He seemed… more happy-go-lucky, trusting, and less… evil than she had anticipated. Kisame caught sight of her right away, and chuckled very loudly. "Ah, so you've finally found yourself some company, eh, Itachi-san? Come on, little lady, show ourself." When Sakura didn't move, Kisame reached out for her arm and pulled her out from behind Itachi.

"Don't jump to conclusions." Itachi said quietly. He stood there as Kisame twirled Sakura around, making her dizzy. He examined her closely.

"Well, if you don't want her, I do." Sakura blushed fiercely at this, not daring to believe how incredibly humorous Kisame was. "What do you say m'lady? Aren't scared of me, are you?" Kisame whispered in her ear. He drew her close to him and Sakura could already feel his erection pressing up on her. She was at a loss of what to say. All of a sudden, Kisame seemed even more frightening than Itachi. She wondered if she would ever feel safe here.

"Enough, Kisame." Itachi, sensing Sakura's discomfort, pulled her away from his partner. Idiotic Kisame, always wanting to fuck every female in his way. He almost always killed them after, and Itachi couldn't have that happening to Sakura. And oddly enough, he felt strangely possessive of her. He narrowed his eyes at Kisame. "Get out of here." He said with menace.

Kisame knew when to back off. "Whatever you say." He winked at Sakura before disappearing.

"Don't get unnerved by him." Itachi told her before walking to the door as well. "We'll eat in five minutes." Before he left though, he felt Sakura tap him on the shoulder. Itachi turned around and looked at her questioningly.

"So when are you going to give me sparring lessons?" Sakura asked him.

"Whenever." He was almost mocking her now. She couldn't do anything about it if he didn't want to teach her anything. Sakura could feel her anger flaring up like usual. She drew back her hand to hit Itachi across the face. He didn't flinch, but grabbed her wrist before she could touch him. "Not smart, Sakura." He whispered. With his hand on her wrist still, he pulled her toward him like Kisame had done moments earlier. This time, Sakura didn't feel scared. She simply glared at him, their faces an inch apart. However, she was surprised when she felt his arm snaking around her waist. Relaxing her arm as he let go of it, she started to cry. How many times had this happened with her and Sasuke? Every time she grew angry at him, this was the situation.

Itachi held her close to him, smelling the lavender in her hair. She was crying into his shoulder now, her shoulders shaking with weakness. He could feel his heart melt just the slightest bit. She must feel horrible being locked him in a place like this. Tomorrow, he'd bring her out to the rest of the forest and teach her how to spar.

They stayed like that, with Itachi's hand around Sakura's waist, the other entwined in her pink hair and Sakura leaning onto him. Finally, Sakura stopped crying. With an embarrassed smile, she wiped her face clean of tears.

"I'm sorry." Sakura whispered. "I'm so sorry."

Itachi looked down at her, unimpressed.

"It's just that Sasuke…" She blinked her eyes shut while saying his name. "I'd always do that. I'd always try to hit him then he'd grab my wrist and you looked so much like him that I just flipped out for a minute." She babbled on while Itachi tilted his head and looked at her. She seemed really weakened by whatever his brother had done to her. He wanted to know what it was. Using the sharingan he stared into her eyes. She gasped for a second, realizing what he was doing a split second before he did it.

We're about to have a very, very juicy flashback guys. Stay with me, and thanks for your comments. Btw, one reviewer asked me if this was sasusaku or itasaku, and though it is a bit of both, it will ultimately end in itasaku. Thanks for reviewing and reading!


	3. Steamy Kisses

_**Flashback**_

_"How could you do this Sakura?" Sasuke's voice asked her accusingly. He seemed truly hurt, and it was the first time Sakura saw that broken expression on his face. "You knew how much I wanted this child, how could you be so careless?" He slapped her across the face and she went flying back into the wall._

_"Sasuke, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, I wasn't thinking. I'm so sorry." Sakura cried, clutching at Sasuke's robes. She gripped her stomach tightly. "We can have another one, I know we can. I swear it!"_

_He turned back around at her. "How could you lose my baby?"_

_**End flashback**_

Itachi stared at Sakura, slightly stunned. So that was why things between his brother and this girl was so… terribly strained? She'd lost his baby. He could imagine how livid his brother would be. All that moron ever thought about was resurrecting the clan, and he'd finally had the chance but she'd lost his child. What terrible luck for her.

Sakura cried, not as loud as she had the night she realized she had a miscarriage, but she cried nonetheless. "Why?" She wailed at Itachi. Her fists pounded on his chest weakly. "Why did you have to make me remember?" Sakura's shoulders shook with her angry tears.

Itachi grabbed the hands that were still hitting him without real force. "Forget him, Sakura." He stood there as she cried in his arms, for the second time that night. Normally, he'd find this rather… peculiar? Today though, he just felt a little bit sorry for her. A girl like Sakura would be devastated if she lost a baby, especially the baby that could have changed her future with his brother. She was so obviously smitten with him, it almost made Itachi sick.

It wasn't very long before Sakura got all cried out. She was peaceful from her exhaustion. Itachi laid the sleeping girl on the bed. Without a word, he got up and left the room, the Akatsuki cape billowing out from under him.

* * *

Sakura woke up the next morning to Itachi standing directly beside her, staring at her intently. "What?" She asked him, not meeting his eyes.

"Get up. We're going sparring."

Sakura looked at him, not really trusting the cold young man. He's not Sasuke, he's not Sasuke, she told herself. He won't do you wrong, he's better than that. She got out of bed rather quickly after that. Itachi left the room. Not wanting to lose the opportunity to leave, she followed closely behind him. After walking by several rooms which she was only slightly familiar with, they reached a set of big oak doors. Itachi pushed them open and Sakura was staring into the vast green forest. The sun shone through some of the trees. She realized that they were on a tall plateau in the middle of this beautiful place.

"We start." Itachi said quietly.

She focused on the task at hand. "What do you want me to do?" She asked him.

"Hit me." He simply stated.

Sakura grit her teeth. That would be easier said than done, she was sure. "Here goes nothing," she muttered under her breath. She charged at her opponent drawing her fist back and bringing her fist to his stomach first. He disappeared within an instant, appearing behind her. He didn't hit her, he merely stayed there long enough to show her that he was there. When she whipped around with her foot to kick him, he was gone again. He didn't show himself this time. Sakura's eyes darted. There! She saw him dart by to her right, then he disappeared once more. Her eyes followed him as he traveled quickly around her. She would never be able to pinpoint where he would be next!

Focusing herself, she forced herself to find a pattern in his movements. After staying still for about 20 seconds, she realized he was moving in circles around her, first clockwise then counterclockwise. Biting her lip as her eyes followed his position for one another time she waited for him to finish one complete rotation. Just as he began to go counterclockwise, she drew an immense amount of her chakra into her arm, and she hit solid flesh this time she struck.

Itachi was sure she would figure it out eventually, but he didn't expect her to be quite so strong. If it hadn't been for his ability to stand his ground, he would have been flung out at least half a kilometer. He stepped back as she hit him, which was a sign of defeat for him. He reappeared directly in front of her. Itachi grabbed the hand that had hit him with one of his own. With his other he drew Sakura close to him. He enjoyed their closeness. Suddenly he leaned into her and strategically placed a kiss on the side of her neck. Sakura gasped as she felt his breath tickle her sensitive skin.

Instinctively, she placed her other arm round his neck and brought him closer to her. He let go of her other hand and used it to grab a hold of her pink hair and pull her in for a kiss. Her mouth opened submissively to his, and their tongues wrestled it out. Sakura was going insane. She could feel every single muscle in his body against her. She was panting with desire, and her skin felt like it was burning. They broke apart for some much-needed air.

"You actually managed to hit me," Itachi said quietly. "But that took too long. No enemy will wait a minute for you to hit him."

That was the first thing he said? How about something to tell her what that electrifying moment was? Sakura stayed silent.

"Where did you learn to hit like that though?" He chuckled quietly, and it was the first time he seemed human to Sakura. "You can draw up enormous amounts of energy, but you'll just be wasting your chakra if you can't hit your target. First, we'll train your eyes to always know where your opponent is next."

Sakura nodded, still a bit confused. He had kissed her. She'd kissed him back. Did that mean nothing to him? How could he not feel the sexual tension between them?

Perhaps he had.

"That's enough for today." Itachi murmured. He headed back to the large house on the plateau. "Come. There are dangers lurking in these woods; you would not want to be caught alone out here."

Sakura complied. She trudged back behind him, still unsure what to make of their passionate liplock. Even Sasuke… Sasuke had never made her feel like that.

Sakura's train of thought was interrupted abruptly when a familiar face appeared right before her own.

Itachi had gone inside, but Kisame grinned widely at her. "So…" Sakura looked at him blankly. "I saw that juicy little kiss with you and the ice block." He gestured at Itachi. The ice block? Sakura cocked an eyebrow. Kisame drew her into his cape and whispered into her ear, "How bout one for me too?"

Sakura couldn't help but smile warily at his boyishness. She pecked him on the cheek and Kisame whooped loudly. With his arm hung loosely around her shoulder, they walked in, heading for the dining room to eat lunch.

Itachi's eyes narrowed at Kisame and Sakura's closeness.

* * *

end chpt

thanks for reviewing on my earlier chapters :)

just to tell you: sasuke will be making an appearance very shortly and it will be interesting


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